Welcome to the PokéCommunity!

Hi there! Thanks for visiting PokéCommunity. We’re a group of Pokémon fans dedicated to providing the best place on the Internet for discussing ideas and sharing fan-made content. Welcome! We’re glad you’re here.

In order to join our community we need you to create an account with us. Doing so will allow you to make posts, submit and view fan art and fan fiction, download fan-made games, and much more. It’s quick and easy; just click here and follow the instructions.

Pokémon Sun and Moon are now available! Read our extensive Sun and Moon review at Daily!

The finale of the fourth annual Favorite Pokémon Tournament is underway in Pokémon General!View the poll and vote for as many Pokémon as you'd like. Voting is only open until the 5th of December though, so don't wait to make your picks!

Roleplay StageThis is where the In-Character roleplaying happens. Before you create a thread here, recruit some players in Roleplay Casting. Your very own legend is about to unfold! A world of dreams and adventures awaits! Let's go!

New threads in this forum are to be approved by a moderator before they are displayed.

Logan Locks

The sun rose on the island of Pandora. The light changed the purple night sky to pinkish-orange, reflecting the daylight. It was officially early morning as the boat was finally reaching Pandora’s shores. The trip took a tedious three days, making Logan Locks aware of what actually happened at Pandora, listening to stories regarding the island from other passengers who have learned more about it. Before heading to her boat trip, Logan researched more on Pandora on the internet, making her feel aware of the surroundings, the citizens that still live there, and the important places to know. As an explorer herself, preparation is key to a successful travel.

Logan wasn’t seasick, she was used to the swaying of the boat. She was able to sleep last night despite the noises the boat was making, as well as the snoring of the other passengers. She sat on her bed inside her cabin, holding a Pokeball in her hand. That Pokeball contained a Staryu Jude Laughner had given her before she went off. She had taken her out a few times, to swim and enjoy the outdoors. Logan doesn’t plan to take her out today, as the boat was scheduled to make a stop finally.

She finally left the boat cabin, closing the door after herself. Immediately, a boat crew worker bumped towards Logan as she was about to turn to the same direction as he was heading. “Oh, sorry man. Didn’t see you.”

“Just came to tell you to pack up your belongings, because we’re about 5 minutes away from the island of Pandora,” The crewmember said firmly to Logan.

She smiled and rushed back inside her cabin once again. She was aiming to get something to eat, but time was definitely cut short. But it didn’t matter to Logan, an Island was ready to explore for her. She took the Pokeball she was holding before from her waist clip, glancing at it once again at the Staryu inside of it. “Well, Staryu…this is it! 5 minutes left and we’d be stepping foot to Pandora.” She placed the small ball inside of her Bermuda shorts pocket, and started to pack her other belongings. Her messenger bag, which was filled with other Pokemon essentials such as empty Pokeballs, medicine, and even Pandora money. She checked to see if she had everything inside, and also packed in her extra clothing inside as well. Her bag was half-full, she felt that it was a better choice to bring a bigger bag rather than a small one she usually carries.

Finishing up her bag, Logan left her cabin for the last time. With her Pokeball in hand, she released it from her hand, releasing her Staryu from the inside. The light from the Pokeball flashed, forming a star shape and fading to the true form of Staryu. Her center core started to flash as it greeted to Logan. “Heeeeeah!”

“We’re almost to the island, Staryu. You ready?” Logan asked.

Staryu nodded, as it flashed her red core once again. She then jumped up and splashed into the ocean. As she swam, she followed the boat that was traveling to the island. It jumped back inside the boat and shook off the excess water that came from the sea. Logan awaits for the boat to dock itself, as she already has her stuff ready. Many of the passengers on the boat have come out of their cabins with their stuff too. For Logan, she thought these people are tourist. Sometimes, Logan thought she was a tourist as well.

“We have arrived to Atara Village in Pandora. Please take your belongings and exit the boat carefully. We thank you for riding the ferry and have a good day!” said the announcer on the intercom.

The island was beautiful, but this was just the beginning. Atara Village had a few boats docked next to the ferry Logan and Staryu was on. She can see many businesses, homes, and merchants. Logan wanted to check out the food they had in Pandora, but time was tight….she just wanted to grab a piece of bread and a bottle of water to eat as breakfast. She couldn’t get the chance to get some food as she was on the boat earlier.

As Logan stopped by at a food cart, she grabbed three pieces of garlic bread and three bottles of water. She was hoping she would be very prepared for her long journey. As she grabbed the three cold bottles of water, the female merchant noticed her Staryu standing there, drying itself up.

“Your Staryu could really use some water, you trainer,” she said, as she grabbed her green hose. “Water Pokemon like your Staryu should stay hydrated, always.”

Logan looked confused, “My Staryu looks fine…?”

The female merchant sprayed water at the Staryu softly. Staryu was enjoying the cold water from the long green hose. “You should probably keep her inside the Pokeball, leaving her out for a long time isn’t good for her health.”

“I’m sorry… I’m…just new to Pokemon like her. I didn’t know, really.” Logan scratched her head and apologized. She felt ashamed with leaving Staryu outside of her ball.

“Well, as long as you keep her super hydrated, she’ll be fine. I know this by experience because I have a Starmie as my own Pokemon. Starmie is the evolved form of Staryu, in case you didn’t know” The merchant stopped spraying water on Staryu, and closed the hose. Logan took out her Pokeball and returned Staryu inside. She was expressionless as she didn’t know that Staryu was a water-type that prefers water rather than ground. The merchant glanced at Logan, smiling. “It’s fine. You’re new, so consider this as a lesson to learn. I’ve seen Pokemon Trainers like you come by here before. So, this is quite common.”

“I have to pack in for my journey. I have three pieces of garlic bread, and three bottles of water,” Logan pointed out the stuff she grabbed with her left arm. “Is there a PokeMart somewhere?”

The merchant looked around in 360 degrees, “There’s a marketplace down the path, go straight and to the left. You’ll see a man selling potions, and other PokeMerch. He’s pretty good, actually.”

Logan took out her Pandora Dollars and paid the merchant. She then packed up her stuff inside her bag, making the bag at least half-full. She then kept one piece of garlic bread on one hand, intending to eat it. “Thank you so much, miss, for your cooperation!” she smiled.

“You’re welcome, have fun on your journey!” The merchant waved at Logan as she walked away.

Logan was still impressed at the many merchants and businesses around her, and in the city. She still has a few more things to shop, but she’s still eager to go inside the forests, especially the hidden temple she had heard of while on the boat. It was her next destination, but she wanted to be prepared mighty early to go inside.

Iruzja awoke from her slumber in about an hour, enough time for her to regain most of her energy. She got up from the bed of grass she had lied on and gave her body a little stretch to relieve herself of her soreness. Picking up her backpack, Iruzja continued her trek through the forest. Across the stream was a narrow, winding path around the forest that seemed to lead downhill, perhaps towards the main road. Iruzja had quite lost her bearings during the nap, and she decided that going down this path might be as good a guess as any. She went down the path and walked a hundred meters. Two hundred. Three hundred meters, it seemed like, was the distance she had walked before she saw him.

He was a sight to behold, to say the least. A burly old hiker, sprawled out on the road like horse dung, purple berries trapped under his right hand. His eyes were open, as was his mouth, and his left hand clutched his stomach as if he was in deep pain. He was...a corpse. Long dead, it seemed, too--his body seemed to have begun to decay, and a foul stench was present in the air. Any other trainer would have made haste with their escape at the mere sight of this abomination, but Iruzja was no such coward. Ever the opportunist, she approached the rotting cadaver, kneeled beside him, and search his person for anything she might be able to use in her journey. Her ten-minute scavenge resulted in a wad of cash, a number of miscellaneous items, and five bags of rations clearly past their expiration date. While the last she wisely decided to leave, everything else she took with her, packed very neatly in a plastic bag she procured from the corpse--no sense rubbing the revolting odor on the rest of her belongings, after all--and Iruzja backtracked to the stream. She subjected the unfortunate river to cleansing Iruzja and her newfound belongings of the corpse's filth, and, after finding that Laughner's supplies did not contain a towel, dried herself with her blanket.

After dressing herself and re-packing her findings, Iruzja returned to the winding path--crossing the poor corpse again as she went--and her guess was proven to be correct: the path did lead to the main road. A large number of trainers walked along the dirt path, and some of them were even battling against each other, to the constant stream of travellers' disdain. One of them, a lively young man perhaps halfway into his teens, went up to Iruzja and said, "You! Let's have a battle, half earnings, eh?"

Uninterested, Iruzja turned her back on him and did not even grant him a simple "no". After all, the next encampment laid in wait on the horizon, perhaps one, two hundred meters from where she was standing. It was marked by an overarching rock formation, and beyond that, several mountains, their tips scratching the very fabric of the skies. She could make out a line of tents surrounding the rock formation, and what seemed to vaguely resemble a market up front. Just what she needed--perhaps the less useful among the dead man's things would fetch a pretty penny, and she needed to stock up on medicinal items anyway. She already took a step towards the encampment when the young man from before shouted behind her again. "What's the matter, you scared?"

Deciding to humor him for a bit, Iruzja stared the young man in the face and demanded, "Name."

"Greg Wilder, why?" came his reply.

"Are you familiar with the story of the demon barber on Fleet Street, Mr. Wilder?" Iruzja asked randomly, taking a step closer towards the young man.

"Uh, yeah. What about him?" he said, his eyebrow arching at the unusual question. "Are you just trying to avoid--"

"Perhaps you recall what happened to poor Pirelli, when he attempted to blackmail the barber into giving him half his earnings--coincidentally, the same amount you wanted to bet against me?" Iruzja asked, her tone menacing.

"Um, well, I think he--"

"He stabbed him, Mr. Wilder. Stabbed him to death, with his friend, his silver razor," Iruzja cut in, drawing her knife out of her coat. "And hmm, I happen to have a silver razor of my own here. I wonder what I'll do with it?"

"Hahaha, you wouldn't! Not over refusing a battle, no way," he ridiculed laughingly, but Iruzja noticed that his face was white with fear. A natural reaction, considering his status as a wee tyke of some fifteen years.

"Try me. Try me," Iruzja dared. She was in his face now, and the tip of her silver dagger made contact with the meat around the boy's hip; the feel of the cold steel sent a shudder up his spine. The lad said no more and hightailed it out of Iruzja's sight, quite understandably afraid of the woman's psychotic facade. What he didn't know, though, is that his belongings was now short of a wallet, courtesy of Iruzja's silver "razor". Quite satisfied with herself, Iruzja opened the leather wallet to reveal only a meager amount of money. "Tsk, so that's why he made such a large a bet," Iruzja said to herself. Stifling her ire at the boy, Iruzja turned around and again made her way to Kamen Rock, this time, to her delight, without interruptions.

Alexander Lance Thornmarsh

Logan Locks

- 700P
+ 3x Bottle of Water
+ 1x Rations

Iruzja Aleksadrov

Dammit! The money that the hiker had was all fake! Maybe this is how he died?

[!] [!] [!] [!] [!]

An older trainer is seen nearby, on the ground dusting for prints while his quite strong looking Rhydon and Pelipper watch and protect him. He's impossible to avoid and sees you from the distance, standing and approaching you. "Good morning, ma'am," he opens with as he comes into speaking distance. You can either challenge him to a battle or ask if he can help or maybe even join you!

Logan Locks

The road to the marketplace was a short walk. Logan, walking all by herself, and with her Staryu back inside the Pokeball, wanted to go check out the marketplace, before she jumps inside the forest. As she reached the corner, Logan stopped and dug her bag for a minute. All her supplies are in there: bottled water, her food, Pokemon Potions, basically essentials for Staryu. She started to realize that she didn’t need to go to the marketplace. She got the basic needs. She has enough Pokeballs, and the medicine. Logan shrugged and decided to head straight to Route 1.

There weren’t much people, both residents and tourists in the village. Logan started to walk down the path that leads to the route. There were no signs. Logan wasn’t certain which route was the correct route to take. I need a map or something, Logan thought. I can’t manage to get through this region without something. She was approached by an old man with a wooden cane, long beard, and bald. He wore ragged clothing and wooden sandals. He slowly walked up to Logan, as she turned to him.

“Yooooou seem lost there, young one,” he said as he came to a wobbly stop. “Yooou must be some kind of….explorer.”

Logan nodded slowly. “Yes, yes I am…kinda. I’m looking for an area where I can train my Staryu as well as do some exploring. Do you know where?”

The old man’s legs started to shake, on the verge of falling. “Yeeeeah. Why not walk through that path over there?” He pointed to the path in front of him and Logan. “That, my lady, is Route One. You’ll find all kinds of Pokemon there, like Pikachu’s, Caterpies, and even Kangaskahns. Iiiii haven’t seen a Kangaskhan anywhere around them parts, but I heard they are miiiighty fighters.”

“I’ll be sure to keep that in mind, sir,” Logan said, eyeing the trail in front of her. “Where will that trail take me?”

“Uhhhh…” The old man had trouble thinking, it took between 30 seconds to a minute to think of what he would say next. “I believe….Kamen Rock. There’s a marketplace and everything.”

Logan nodded again at the old man. “Thank you, sir…for your courtesy. I really appreciate it.” She smiled and started to walk on the trail, heading up. Route one was the trail’s name.

Route One consisted of a forest. So many trees, bushes, basically greenery. Logan had been through the many trails like the one she was in now. It was peacefully quiet, for now. She can faintly hear the sounds of some Pokemon. Hoothoots were still awake, Spinaraks spinning their webs somewhere around the trees, and Pidgeys flying around. Logan kept walking, glancing at each side of the forest. Then, she stopped. She wanted to go inside the forest herself. As she turned to the right side of the trail, she stepped inside the leafy area, feeling that the ground is saturated with water.

As Logan kept walking, she felt a small *thud* on the ground. She wasn’t certain that it was one of the Kangaskhans around the area. The old man did say that there weren’t any. She took a few steps more to find a stream of water right in front of her. The blue water flowed in a straight line, sparkling bright to reflect the rising sun from behind the trees. A small gust of wind blew through, blowing Logan’s ponytail. She took in a sigh as she glanced around the breathtaking forest.

Logan took out her Pokeball again, and released Staryu out of the ball. The ball opened, flashing a white ray on the water stream. As Staryu came out, she jumped on the water, the stream was too weak to push the star shape Pokemon. “Heeyah!”

“You like the water, don’t you? Obvious, you’re a water-type.” Logan sighed, as Staryu splashed water on the flowing stream, splatting some at Logan. Logan’s legs were sprinkled with water, then chuckled with the Staryu. “Stop it, you! Haha!”

Meanwhile, behind a bush nearby the trainer, something (or someone) is hiding right behind the big bush. The eyes shined, reflecting the sun’s rays. They blinked quickly, then started to walk back. This something (or someone) was aiming towards Staryu.

Martha Elson

The temptation to remain in the Cascoon of civilisation was a strong one. Atara village was a strange place, owed in no small part to its only recent founding and completely isolated location, but it was not unlike any small village that one might stumble upon. It was quiet, far from the life that Martha was used to, and yet there were still many people bustling back and forth from one half of the town to the other. That was something that she remembered very well. Maybe it was that people were likely to be much more forgiving than the endless wilds of Pandora were, but Martha suspected that it was only her imagination running away with her, rather than any real threat.

Then again, she had just been warned not to head down one of the paths out of town if she really valued her life. That may have been what really discouraged Martha from strolling out, knowing that she could be walking into a death sentence. That was only route five, she had been told, but who was to say that route one was any different?

It was the first step on a journey into the unknown, made by a woman with almost no experience in the art of travel. She had an excuse to be worried. Never had there been a more experienced woman for the job, Martha was sure.

Grete seemed remarkably more keen, apparently ignorant of Martha's hesitation. The psychic type tugged at her trousers again, trying to will her trainer onwards. Martha shooed her off once more and thankfully the beast decided to leave her alone, but it was enough to convince Martha to keep walk. If such a tiny, fragile creature was perfectly happy to wander into the forest then Martha was sure that the wilds couldn't be too detrimental to her health. Marching along the dirt path that ran through Atara village the two headed off, walking away from the centre of the village and in the direction that she had been pointed by the merchant.

Still eager to get going, at least more so that Martha was, Grete bounded several paces forward, keeping far in front of the woman. In her excitement she occasionally turned down alleyways and streets that Martha had no intention of taking, and at one point the bounce Pokémon managed to spring a few steps up the temple before turning back down and returning to her owner's side. She was a Pokémon fuelled by enthusiasm if nothing else, and that was something that Martha struggled to relate to. The reward was just about the only thing driving her.

Kicking up a little dust as they walked, the Pokémon and trainer spent a few minutes trailing along the dirt path until they approached the edge of route one, assuming that the sign beside them was to be trusted. Martha glanced over it, hoping to find a few friendly tips that you might find on the signs back home. They had often gotten on her nerves back home, reading the same message every time that she passed by, but now Martha was feeling almost desperate for a tiny piece of information to help her get by. It showed nothing but directions. Not even a mention of using small cliffs as a shortcut.

For a moment the woman halted, her mind running through a plethora excuses not to leave just yet. She hadn't picked up any medicines, and she was positive that she had left something back on the ship. Martha was having a hard time convincing herself of these lies, and poorly thought up excuses did not find one a legendary treasure told through ancient fairy tales. She held her eyes shut, pushing them tightly against each other. When she opened them she was going to walk.

With one foot after the other, followed by the sounds of rusty springs and light thuds, the witless pair began their stroll down route one. The bushes and trees grew thicker and taller as they went, winding and twisting around the roads, forging itself into a thick forest. A thin, winding dirt and stone track was all that Martha had to make sure that she wasn't wandering around in circles, as the pillars of bark and wood all looked the same to her. They did pass by a thin stream which connected to a lake just off of the beaten path, but neither Martha nor Grete bothered to spend the time exploring it. Presumably the stream quickly headed off down to the coastline, but the woman couldn't see much point in venturing any further.

Route one was not spent just walking. Martha had slipped a small red device from her pocket, and had begun to punch in a few of the buttons that lined the side of the contraption. The Pokédex was a marvellous, albeit completely useless device for an inexperienced traveller. So many buttons, so many settings and absolutely no information whatsoever. It showed plenty of information on Spoink, but that was only because Martha had scanned Grete earlier today. Being the only reading material she had on her, Martha pondered through the information more specific to Grete rather than her species. Apparently she knew a move called 'Splash', although she lacked any other combat techniques. It sounded like a Water type move, and Martha only hoped it was simple enough to not need much practice in. It also stated that Spoink were a Psychic type, but she already knew that.

“So, you can use Splash?” Martha didn't leave a moment for Grete to respond. “I have no idea what that does but I hope it's enough to fend off anything that comes along. I sure hope so, since I have no idea what lives in these forests. It could be just about anything.”

Grete gave an uneasy smile.

Flicking the device closed, she slipped it back into her pocket. In twenty seconds she had read just about everything stored in the device. While it had a few other features beyond examining Pokémon, none of them were of any use to Martha just yet.

Despite what Martha had first thought, she did not flinch at every broken twig or jump at the sound of a Pidgey cooing. She kept her eyes planted firmly on the ground, refusing to find herself distracted and preferring to watch her footing. She wanted to guide herself down the occasion slope and over the odd root or two that splayed out onto the path, not stumble into the undergrowth. She paid little attention to anything beyond the route ahead of her.

There was a flash of green and black in the corner of Martha's eye, creeping across one of the thick tree trunks that lined her path. For a moment she thought it to be nothing but the wind rustling the tree branches, but when it appeared in front of her her eyes shot towards its. Martha was surpised that she had even seen the creature. Martha knew that Spinarak liked to strike when their prey was unaware, and this one just seemed clumsy. It simply sat on the tree branch hanging ahead of her, watching.

A thin stream of webbing flew from the trees. It took a moment for Martha to register what had happened, only to be punched in the arm by the force of the silk spray. Striking her, it splattered out like some kind of fishing net, wrapping around her arm and knocking her backwards. While Martha stumbled she did not fall, her foot moving back to support the impact just in time. Instead her free hand began to claw at the webbing that clung to her clothing, trying to pull it off in clumps. All that she succeeded in doing was getting her hand wrapped in a sticky silk.

The Spinarak rappelled down from the tree branch on a thread of string, its back facing towards Martha, the pattern across it displaying a typical grimace that gave the creatures their fame. It flexed its legs and dropped to the ground, landing remarkably gracefully for a Pokémon that looked like it would trip over its own legs when moving at anything other than walking speed. It reared its head, spraying another beam of silk, this time spiralling towards Grete. Unlike Martha, Grete was a little more agile, bounding up and out of the way from the webbing and letting it splatter against the ground.

Martha glanced at Grete, checking that she was perfectly fine, and then turned back to the Spinarak which seemed to be preparing for another attack. “Grete, em...” she paused for a moment, pondering her next move. She hadn't many options. “Use Splash!”

Grete started bouncing up and down, much faster and more aggressively than it had done moments earlier. Staring at the Spoink, Martha waited impatiently for it to perform some kind of amazing move that would knock the Spinarak away and let the two of them continue with their journey unscathed.

Another spear of silk struck Martha's shin like a firm kick, her feet vanishing from underneath her and her chest smacking against the dirt floor. She kicked her legs but they stuck firmly in place. Grete quit her mindless springing and moved beside her trainer, pulling at Martha's shoulder and trying to help her back up. Another string shot attack caught Grete in the back, latching onto her and launching her backwards out of sight.

Martha grunted, rolling onto her back and bringing her knees to her chest. Pulling at the webbing with both hands, she found it almost impossible to pry off, wrapping tightly around her ankles and keeping them pressed together. But she had a knife. One of the many things that Laughner had included in his bag of supplies. Hand falling to her thigh, she gripped the weapon and pulled it from its holster. Martha brought the blade to the binds and tried to slice through the string, tugging at it with the blade using both hands. It wasn't much help.

October Carter -

With Tantor trudging beside her and Zazu flying around her head, October began to wonder what exactly it was that the Geologist asked her to get for him. He had only left her a note asking for the favour, not alluding to any other details that would make October’s venture that much easier. A shabby, half-made wooden sign was the only signal that Atara Village ended and the first route began; the sand ground of Atara Village merging with the soft, bracken ridden ground of Route One.

October was about to step in when she caught a man pacing off to her left; the same man that had dragged her into his house last night. Wanting answers and fast, October turned and walked over to the man. “Thank you for last night, I don’t think I would have made it out alive if it wasn’t for your help,” she began, wanting to make sure he understood how grateful she was, “but which Pokémon and what item am I meant to be recovering for you?” She didn’t have time to muck around; as always Laughner would probably be getting annoyed at the lack of progress.

“ Oh! Hello there!" The Geologist spun around as October started to talk to him. "You're perfectly welcome, ma'am. I treat a lot of wounds caused by the rough Pokémon here." He gave a laugh and shook his head.

"I guess you read my letter. Um, sorry, what was the problem?"

"I need to know which Pokémon has the item you requested me to get and what item it is before I run off blindly into the route." October let a hint of annoyance creep into her voice, not intentionally, but she wasn't one to muck around.

"Right, sorry, I misheard you. Yes! My letter, see, I'm a little forgetful. Um... that's right! The one that has the rare thing... yes. Oh, um, what was its name again? Uhh..." Boone tapped his chin, trying to remember. "Well, it's a rare one. People don't see it often. Haha," he shook his head. "This is so terrible of me! It's a good thing I'm a Geologist and not a Pokémon professor. Study of the earth, you know? What a Pokémon professor be called? A Pokéologist? Does that make sense?"

It was obvious that Tristan Boone was not quite all there. A sandwich short of a picnic. A few cents short of a dollar.

"Now, um... It... stands on two legs and has a tail. And... oh dear. I'm sorry, I can't remember its name. Only that it's quite important. I'm very sorry I can't be anymore helpful."

October was starting to get a bit frustrated now, his answer had been quite vague and there were almost a hundred different Pokemon that stood on two legs and had tails; how many of them existed in this Route? "Do you remember any other features?" she asked impatiently, "Colour? Fur? Scales?" anything that could help her to narrow down which of the hundred possible pokemon it could be.

Boone frowned, trying to remember more. He couldn't. "I'm sorry, I've only been told stuff about it. I've never seen one. But I'll pay you handsomely if you find it! 2000P! How does that sound?"

October let out a sigh, 2000P was a nice amount, but she had very little information about it. "That sounds....great" she added a little unenthusiastically, "but what about the object you want? What is it?"

"It... it's... it carries it with it all of the time. I'm sorry ma'am, but that's all I have. Now, if you please, I need to get back to my work." And with that, Tristan Boone walked back into Atara Village.

Hello, dear friends. I hope you all had an interesting last three days and are well into your adventure to search for the treasure of Pandora. I'm using my satellites right now to see you from above and you all look like you're getting along fine with your Pokémon. That's excellent! They will be your greatest ally and most useful tool to try and survive Pandora. Remember, Pandora is said to be rebuilt by Pokémon, so you may only have one chance to have another Pokémon interpret you plundering their castles.

In other news, you're all doing a fine job so far. If you need any help progressing, do not hesitate to message me back. I am getting different words from different people all of the time on this side and your side of the world. Knowledge will serve you well on your expedition.

Well, that's all! Have a fun day today!

October read the message that beeped up on her PokeDex from Laughner, dismissing it quickly as it had little information on it about their mission at hand nor the one she was undertaking for the Geologist. With Tantor and Zazu by her side she journey into the rather worn path of the first route. In the trees on the edge of the path bugs and bird pokemon hid in the trees, safe from the human travellers whom frequented the path. October even caught a glimpse of two Pokémon, possibly Pikachu, running after each other in the shrubbery, but nothing she could fit to the description or lack thereof she had been given.

Of course, the only way she would be able to find this rare Pokémon would be by going off the unbeaten path and so a little way in she took a sharp turn, hopping over the shrubbery that lined the route and began to walk north-west, keeping the path on her right side while venturing further into the wilds of the route.

It didn’t take her long before something snagged her food and October went tumbling to the ground; almost crashing into Tantor on the way. When she tried to get up she felt something glue like slicking to her body, keeping her from moving. Tantor and Zazu were frantic about October’s dilemma, but even more afraid as a conglomeration of Spinarak, Weedle and Caterpie came at them from all sides.

Zazu began weaving in and out of the low hanging treeline as String Shot attacks fired at him from all directions, several catching him and slowing him down. “Zazu, Leech Life!” October yelled as he took on a Caterpie who tried String Shot to slow the Zubat down and ground the bat before tackling him.

“Tantor! Growl!” October order and Tantor let out a half-hearted growl, still a little young to have the full effect, but still managing to make some of the Pokémon shudder. “Tackle!” She called out again as the young Phanpy barrelled in to a Caterpie then a Spinarak while taking Poison Stings from a Weedle.

“Zazu, Supersonic!” October only just remembered the Pokémon knew that move as he dove and swirled, firing sonic bursts wildly; some of them hitting. “Follow up by Leech Life then Supersonic again! Keep the rotation!” Zazu let out a cry before biting the opposing Caterpie with its fangs, sapping it’s life then confusing it. Within five minutes a whole pile of Spinarak, Caterpie and Weedle began fighting each other, running into things or generally being confused, but still managed to hit Zazu enough to tire him out.

Tantor, Defence Curl, Tackle, Growl, Tackle, you’re doing great, just keep the rotation going!” October watched helplessly as the young, strong headed Phanpy curled into a ball as Caterpie tackled into it, running back at them by following up with a tackle. He growled once again at the bugs before tackling a Spinarak giving him a hard time.

Struggling against the silk, she managed to free her arm enough to free the knife from her backpack before slashing at the silk that help her captive. Once free, she ran over to Phanpy, spraying it’s body with one of the potions, watching the small, blue elephant become more revived, attacking more vigorously as bug Pokémon after bug Pokémon fell to the ground, beaten. October did the same to Zazu cheering both of them on.

Three, four, five, six bug Pokémon corpses littered the floor as Tantor and Zazu fought bravely. A screech from above announced the arrival of Hoothoot and Pidgey causing the remaining bug Pokémon scatter as the bird Pokémon came down to feed on the corpses of the bug Pokémon.

“Let’s get out of here before we get into a fight with these things,” October told her Pokémon before pushing further north-west.

It didn’t take them long before they stumbled onto a small clearing, October falling to her knee and holding the two Pokémon back as she watched from the shrubbery at the lone Bulbasaur plod along laxly on its path.

“Zazu, Supersonic,” October whispered and the Zubat fired a sonicwave, confusing the Bulbasaur, “Tantor, Tackle it!” She said much louder as the Phanpy launched itself out of the bushes, ploughing into the small Pokémon.

Two on one was unfair, but that was a standard Pokemon fight, out here in the wilds, anything goes. “Zazu, Leech Life, Tantor, Tackle!” October ordered again As the Bulbasaur pushed through the confusing, landing Leech Seeds on both Tantor and Zazu, leaching their life bit by bit while rejuvenating its own. While Tantor was taking the most damage from the Leech Seeds, Zazu was doing major damage to the Bulbasaur with its Leech Seed.

The Bulbasaur continued to tackle Tantor back as the two clashed together again and again; Tantor slowly coming off worse until a tackle brought Tantor to his knees.

“Tantor, return,” October pulled the Phanpy back into the safety of its PokeBall, not wanting it to get hurt as the Bulbasaur now turned its attention to Zazu; the bat confusing the Dinosaur even more by running it in circles.
October saw her chance as the Bulbasaur crashed into a tree root in confusing, panting heavily and seemingly beat, “hold back, Zazu,” she ordered the Zubat as she tossed a PokeBall at the weakened Bulbasaur. The ball soon clicked and she waited patiently for the Bulbasaur to stop fighting, hoping that it didn’t possess the energy to break out of the ball.

Robert allowed Bejamin to take all his necessary shots. He smiled for them until Pinhead appeared right in the way of the third and then made subsequent attempts to ruin the rest by strategically placing herself right in the way as soon as the picture was taken. He didn't know if these plans of sabotage were intentional or if she always appeared right at the wrong time. Some pictures didn't have her blocking the main point, but most of them had a little clip of Pinhead somewhere. When the pictures were over, Pinhead floated in the air, blinking and staring in one direction, as if the flash had made her temporarily blind. Robert ignored her minor predicament.

"I was thinking about looking around in the forest--I think there's a path over there--, but the innkeeper has me thinking about doing a little service work instead." Robert grinned as he spoke. "I was going to head out and do that now once I asked around. How about you? Any plans?" Once again a chime went off, signalling another incoming message. He glanced down at his pocket and then away. He wondered briefly what it was about, but ignored it for the time being. He remembered what the innkeeper told him, about needing some extra help. Eying Benjamin, he was tempted for the moment to ask him, but decided against it. He stuttered when he made normal conversation, something told Robert he wouldn't be exactly cut out for cutting off Scyther limbs.

"Shup...?" Pinhead blinked and looked at Benjamin curiously, as if he was from another world and looked at Mr. Ambrose behind him much the same way. When her confused observations were made she floated over Robert's shoulder and disappeared, apparently not wanting to be seen. He raised a brow at her actions and then disregarded it. A Pinhead who wanted to stay out of the way was worth no questioning. He kind of enjoyed it.

Logan Locks

Continuing to rest after a long walk in Route 1, Logan sat on the grassy ground, dipping her feet on the shimmering stream. Staryu jumped on the water, splashing everywhere, even at Logan. She got her legs wet, but didn’t seem to mind at all. A Pokemon like Staryu would be too playful.

Then, looking down, Logan spotted something sparkly right next to her left foot. It looked shiny. She bent over to pick up the shiny item from the stream, and gave a closer look at it. It looked like a blue necklace with a blue crystal. “I’ve seen this somewhere before,” Logan said to herself, “Mystic Water, is it?”

“Heeeeyah!” Staryu replied.

“It’s an item for you to use, Staryu,” Logan turned to the Star Pokemon, “it powers up your water-type moves. Come, I’ll put it on for you.”

Staryu walked over to Logan and retrieved the Mystic Water necklace from her. She was now wearing the necklace right on top of her head. Logan wondered if she was able to hold on to it, as she liked to jump a lot…literally.

All of the sudden, sounds were being heard at the bush nearby. They were being louder than before, when Logan didn’t mind. Logan turned to the bush to find a yellow rodent with red cheeks and a lightning tail coming out of the bush. Its fur on the top of the head was spiked up, giving this Pikachu a tough look. Logan stood there, glancing at the yellow mouse. She didn’t move a muscle as she was awed by the cuteness of the Pikachu.

“Oh hello there, little one,” Logan greeted, “You look so adorable!”

“Pika Pika!” The Pikachu cried at Logan. She couldn’t tell whether the Pikachu was being nice or trying to pull a trick. Logan bent over to get close to the Pikachu, and reached out for it. The Pikachu looked at her in a funny way, at the same time it wanted to bite the fingers off of the trainer, but it didn’t want to attack immediately. It was trying to gain confidence. Logan wasn’t certain whether she’d dare to touch the Pikachu or simply walk away. She did what she dared to do.

“What brought you here?” She asked.

The Pikachu stayed silent.

Staryu jumped up in front of Logan, with a battle position she wasn’t aware of. “Staryu…what are you doing…?”

The Staryu didn’t bother to listen to Logan. She jumped and spun herself around, aiming to tackle the Pikachu. Suddenly, the Pikachu was able to dodge the attack just in time, quickly sprinting away. Sparks start to pop from the yellow mouse. It cringed with anger towards the Staryu. Logan wasn’t liking where the whole thing was heading. She took a step back from the ongoing battle, then she tripped on a rock and fell on the streaming water, getting most of her bottom half of the body wet. “Oh god!” she complained. She splashed the water with her fists with frustration.

“Pikachu!” The Pikachu roared at the Staryu. She then spun for another tackle. But the Pikachu was charging up an attack…a Thundershock attack. “Chuuuuuuuuuuuuu!” It finally releases a charge of electricity, traveling towards Staryu. It became a direct it, zapping the Staryu and unleashing the strength from her. As a water-type, there was no guarantee whatsoever if Staryu would survive the attack. Pikachu finished the Thundershock attack, witnessing its opponent falling down to the ground.

Staryu was downright done, her red jewel in the middle of her star-shaped body was flashing red with weakness. Logan got up from the stream, her shorts dripping with water, and was barefooted…yet to put on her shoes just yet. She ran towards the weak Staryu and took out a spare Potion from her pocket. Bending down to one knee, she stared at the Pokemon and opened the Potion. “Don’t worry, I’ll cure you!” Hesitantly, she sprayed at the wounds on each of the five sides, including the one holding the Mystic Water. She then looked up to the Pikachu that decided to attack her, realizing that some Pokemon can be very hostile sometimes.

The Pikachu decided to dash off, crunching the leaves with its four paws. “Pika…Pika…Pika…”

Staryu woke up after a few moments, it moved a bit on Logan’s arm. Her middle jewel started to glow again. She gets off from Logan and heads to the water again.

“No time to play now, Staryu. We need to train,” Logan stood up and brushed off the dirt from her knee. “It’s gonna be hard, but you need the experience. Maybe later we’ll find that Pikachu again and beat the crap out of it. It’s not fair to be defeated by just one attack.”

October Carter

Benjamin Whistler

"Th-thanks, sir," Benjamin took one last one and let his camera hang at his neck. Benjamin's eyes seemed to light up when Macintosh spoke of going out into the wild. This was exactly what he needed! Experience of a real Pokémon wilderness! It was all so exciting!

Lucy, Benjamin's Rufflet, whistled lightly, either making it known she was there or conversing maybe with Macintosh's Shuppet. Benjamin didn't mind; she needed friends just as much as he did.

"S-say, Mr. Mac-Macintosh, you wouldn't m-mind at all if we, if I joined you, would you?" Benjamin fumbled with the camera in his hand, taking on last picture of the surroundings around him. Pictures of the wild would be just the thing he needed! And loads of notes. If he could just watch Macintosh, perhaps get an interview from him...

Having killed the two Spinaraks wrapped them in a shirt and packed them in his bag. He would save them for later when he could do with the food. He moved over to his Cubchoo, that was still struggling with the sticky thread, and cut her loose.

“Come on! I'm not spending all day looking after you!” He said marching off down the track. As the track wound on he was lead toward a river, which he would have to cross to continue onwards. Maybe he should back track it looked like he would have to wade through the water to get across. It was a shame there wasn't a log or something he could climb across. He looked up and down the bank on both sides of the river the easiest path was upstream, where the brush was less dense and the ground was firmer. Alex waited for Cubchoo to catch him again before starting on his trek upstream. Some few hundred yards on he stopped dead. There lapping water from the river was a small yellow Pokemon. He recognised it, a Pikachu. Weren't they meant to be rare. He squatted down and pulled his bag off his back so that he could examine his Pokedex. The Pikachu was up wind of him so it hadn't caught his scent and ran yet, it just stood there drinking the water occasionally looking up and checking for signs of danger. Alex pointed the device at the Pikachu and opened it, causing it to buzz to life.

“Pikachu! The electric...” The Pokedex began to call loudly, in it's mechanical voice, alerting the Pokemon. It looked up startled as Alex tried to shut the sound off on the device, swearing all the time. He managed it but it was too late, it had spotted him and bolted into the undergrowth on the other side of the river. Alex had found out what he had hoped to, there on the screen it read “Rarity: Rare.”

“Come on!” He yelled grabbing Cubchoo so he wouldn't have to wait for her. Alex was not going to let that Pokemon get away, if he caught it he would sell it at the next camp he reached. After all he had all these Pokeballs why not put them to good use. He dashed across the stream getting his boots wet though no water got in them and followed the small Pokemon. As he ran Cubchoo sat perched atop Alex's bag holding onto the handle with all the might her little arms could muster.

“Choo! Choo!” Cubchoo yelled as Alex sprinted through the woodlands following the yellow blur as it darted through the bushes and between trees. Slow down! I'm going to fall off!

“Good to hear you having fun!” Alex shouted back to his Pokemon, completely oblivious to what it was actually saying, as he vaulted over a log that the Pikachu had just dived under. “I need you in good spirits to fight this thing in a moment so you had better be ready!” The Pikachu was tiring and would soon have to come to a decision. Would it try to flee or stop and save it's energy to fight. That said so was Alex, his fitness wasn't as great as it had been a good few years ago when he was in his prime. He was getting breathless and his limbs were beginning to feel heavy as though there were lead weights around his wrists and ankles. But still he pressed on with the pursuit, he almost fell a couple of times on the rough root covered ground but managed to stay on his feet somehow. The Pikachu slowed and jumped into the air, bouncing off a tree and landing on all fours facing Alex.

“Pika!” It yelled adopting a crouching position, the hairs on it's back standing on end and it's tail held high in the air. “Chu!” It unleashed a Thundershock attack at Alex. It hit him hard, stunning him and knocking him back. It hurt a lot but not so much that he wouldn't be able to take action. If it weren't for the fact that he hit his head on a tree on the way down he would have got right on in there.

As the Thundershock struck Alex Cubchoo jumped from his shoulder landing with a rather awkward bump on the floor. She looked round at her trainer but he was out of it. A little unsure of what to do she looked back toward the Pikachu. It was facing her down with a rather angry look upon it's face.

“Pika!” It cried. It was very irate at having being chased through the forest and all for just trying to get a drink. Though it was shorter than Cubchoo it didn't mean it was any less strong than her. “Chu!” It growled at Cubchoo preparing for another Thundershock. Looking once more at her trainer Cubchoo decided that regardless of how mean Alex had been to her she had to defend him now. If she did a good job of it she could even win his trust a little. The Thundershock hit Cubchoo while she was still unprepared, it hurt her a little but not too badly. She retaliated with her own Icy Wind attack. With a snuffle she blew a blast of cold air at the Pikachu. A shiver went down the Pikachu's spine as the freezing breath hit it but it was still prepared to fight. It unleashed it's strongest Thundershock yet a blast of energy that threw Cubchoo to the ground bear Alex. The Pikachu stood panting and looking at them.

-

Alex was stood in a field of waist deep grass. The wind was blowing a gale around him tearing away at the long grass all around. In front of his was a Pokemon, a Sandshrew. He knew the Pokemon well it was Sandy it was his first Pokemon. Standing opposite Sandy was a Rattata. In his hand was a Pokeball ready to make his first catch.“Sandy go! Sand Attack!” Alex ordered his Pokemon, his voice sounding much younger that it had done the last time he had heard it. Sandy rushed forwards and with a swipe of her claw sprayed sand at the Rattata. Though it was blinded the Rattata charged Sandy with a headlong Tackle. The wild attack missed Sandy by a narrow margin.

“Hit it with a Scratch Attack!” Alex shouted ecclesiastically, feeling a sense of joy and excitement he hadn't felt for such a long time. As Sandy prepared to attack with her sharp claws the Rattata dived in with a Quick Attack. Sandy was knocked back but managed to land a hit on the Rattata.

“Sandy!” Alex gasped as his Pokemon fell to the floor.

-

“Sandy.” Alex groaned as he was still unconscious. Cubchoo hearing the sound pushed herself to her feet. It wasn't her name her trainer had called but he needed her now and she was going to do her best. She inhaled her mucus and took a deep breath simultaneously.

“Choo!” She cried as she released her Icy Wind attack. The attack hit the Pikachu head on it had underestimated Cubchoo's resolve and as such wasn't prepared for the attack.

“Pika!” It cried as it shook snow and ice from it's fur. It dashed forwards and whipped Cubchoo twice with it's tail.

“Cub!” Cubchoo took in another breath, readying herself for another attack. “Choo!” She blasted another Icy Wind at the Pikachu.

-

Sandy got back to her feet, rather slowly and shaking rather a lot.

“It's all right Sandy! That's enough!” Alex called taking the Pokeball in hand ready to throw. Sandy wasn't listening to him she charged forwards at the Rattata. She hit it with a Scratch while it countered with a tackle. Sandy fell to the floor once again. Alex was about to yell but he felt his head spin. For a moment his eye lids flickered and the grass land was replaced with a dense woodland. Sandy was replaced with a blue blob and the Rattata a yellow blob. His vision wavered and he was back again he lined up his Pokeball to throw it already knowing how it would end. The Rattata would break out of the ball. But wait why was he laying on the ground in such an awkward position to throw. His eye lids flickered again and he was back to the forest, focusing on the yellow blob he aimed the Pokeball. When he threw it he was throwing it at the Rattata. It hit the Pokemon and absorbed it. Then the ball sat closed on the ground and began to shake.

The sun stung his eyes as Robert finally left the temple. Blinking he stumbled back towards the market. His bag was heavy with orb he had acquired for the stall holder.
"I wonder what the man is planning to do with these things....If I hadnt promised I'd seriously consider keeping them," He was speaking aloud again and the early risers, which were now beginning to clog up the small village streets, were giving him strange looks. Yawning he ignored them and continued on trying to get a plan together. As he did so the low mumbling of many voices began to grow louder, it was constantly being pierced by shouts as stall holders vied for the attention of the swelling throng.
"TOP BANANAS 100P!" "4 PUNNETS 300P!" "BEST CLOTHING! GOOD DEALS!"
The voices were almost deafening and seemed to go on and on. It was a wonder they kept their voices. Signs everywhere displayed the many places the goods had come from.

After fighting his way through the ever growing throng Robert found the stall he had visited before. It was in a quieter area of the market dedicated to more specialist goods. The man still stood at his post and the thought struck Robert that he perhaps never slept. Shaking off such preposterous thoughts Robert approached. "Hello again!" He greeted the man as he fought back a yawn.

Alexander Lance Thornmarsh

Oh no!! The Pikachu failed to be caught. And it ran away too... dammit!

CUBCHOO learned GROWL!

- 1x PokéBall
+ 2x Spinarak bodies

Robert Hawkins

"Well, hello there! You're back!" the merchant was aligning his goods on his table, making sure they were all straight and an equal distance apart. Most trainers were off exploring so it was a little quieter for merchants in the morning. Well, there were also trainers, like this man here, who had done the bidding of merchants and were back in the morning. Or late afternoon. You know what, it was busy most of the time.

"Do you have the orb for me? I was starting to think you had bailed on me! What have you brought back? The orbs? The Pokémon? The orbs?"

Logan Locks

Walking alongside the shimmering stream, Logan went off to look for potential opponents to train Staryu. Maybe a wild Pokemon, maybe a wandering trainer, maybe at least something for Staryu to use as a punching bag. She sighed briefly at the Star Pokemon, who was hopping and skipping at the stream. Hopping through rocks, lilypads, and shrubs.

“Heeeeeeyah! Heeeeeeyah!!” cried Staryu as she continues to hop.

“Shhhh,” murmured Logan as she stopped, “I just heard something.”

She did a 360 degree turn, as she heard some kind of chirping sound. It was not the Pikachu she encountered earlier, or at least it didn’t sound like it at all. She shrugged off and continued to walk. Staryu followed, and managed to jump ahead of Logan. Not too far ahead, she spotted a larger body of water that the stream was leading to. It was sparkling beautiful, and breathtaking. Logan’s eyes sparkled with enthusiasm. She even felt like jumping inside the water just to see her toes in the water, as it was crystal clear.

Staryu turned to Logan and sprayed water at her face, then jumped in the small lake, making a huge splash. Staryu just loves being in the water, it seems.

“Stop it, Staryu…” Logan said, “We need to get serious here. You need the training.” But there was no answer whatsoever from the Star Pokemon. She didn’t respond to Logan’s calling. “…Staryu?”

Still no answer. Logan crossed her arms and sighed. As she is an inexperienced trainer, she was trying her best to tame the Pokemon. Jude Laughner had told her that Staryu would become obedient to Logan, but it seemed like she wasn’t. As she awaits for Staryu to come out of the water, she stood to glare at the trees covering the morning sun. Many of the trees were blocking the daylight, making most of the forest in Route 1 a bit darker than the outside.

A few moments have past, and Logan’s patience was on a thread. But there was something, or someone creeping right behind her. A Spinarak threaded down right behind Logan’s head, hanging on a string. While Logan was throwing away her patience, she wasn’t aware of the Spinarak standing right behind her.

“Oh well, Staryu. Have it your way,” Logan snapped, “I’ll just go find some other Pokemon to train.”

As she turned around, her eyes widened as the Spinarak cried with a greeting. Logan screamed as she stepped back a few steps away from the spider Pokemon. “Speeeeee!”

“Oh my God!” Logan exclaimed, “Get away! Staryu!” Calling out Staryu wasn’t helping as much. The Staryu didn’t respond again, as usual. The Spinarak starts to attack, throwing Poison Stings at her. Luckily she missed, as she continues to run. She wasn’t aware that the Spinarak had gotten off the string and started to follow. Staryu has yet to come out of the water yet. What’s she doing in there? Why won’t she respond?

The Spinarak still managed to attack Logan as it spits out a string, grabbing and wrapping around her right hand. The hand was starting to feel tight as the strings tied up. Logan kept glancing at the lake as there was no sign of Staryu. Hope was starting to lose, as well as trust.

“STARYU!!!” Logan screamed as the Spinarak kept attacking her.

WOOOOSH.

Staryu came out with a splash, spinning out of the water and facing Logan and the Spinarak. Her red jewel in the middle sparkled, reflecting the weak sunlight. Then as she was about to jump back inside the water, she throws a spray of water directly at the Spinarak, it was somewhat of a direct hit. The water washed off the string shot from Logan’s arm, letting go from the Spinarak and relieving from the pain.

SPLASH.

“About time you responded!” Logan shouted. “Now come out and fight!”

Staryu came out of the water finally, landing on the grassy ground. “Heeeeyah!” It was definitely ready to fight. The Spinarak starts releasing purple poison darts once again at Logan as well as Staryu. Staryu jumped and spun up high to avoid the stingers.

“Use that water move again…whatever it was that you do!” Logan shouted, not knowing what move Staryu used to attack with water. She was indeed clueless.

Staryu sprayed a ton of water from the point to the Spinarak. The Spinarak was pushed to the nearby leafy bush due to the powerful stream of water from the star Pokemon. The Mystic Water must have boosted up the water-type attack. She jumped to Logan and keeps an eye on the Spinarak as it came out of the bush, ready to attack once more.

Staryu starts spraying water once again, finally weakening the Spinarak. However, it continued to throw poison darts at both.

“Now tackle!” Logan shouted.

“Heeeyah!” Staryu cried as it jumped high and spun around whooshing towards the Spinarak like a Frisbee. It was a direct hit for Staryu, tackling him while spinning. The Spinarak flew back to the outside part of the bush and laid there on its back. Logan wanted to be sure if it was unable to attack, she was also thinking of attempting to catch it. She took out a Pokeball from the bag, and with great force, she throws it at the Spinarak.

“Go Pokeball!”

As the Pokeball hits the Spinarak, it sucks the Pokemon inside the ball. Then, it closes and falls to the ground. All of the sudden, Logan started to feel a bit ill, as she found a Poison Dart right on her knee. She wasn’t aware of the sting until it started to hurt. She then fell to the ground, blacking out due to the poison spreading right inside of her body. She wasn’t certain if she was able to capture the Spinarak, or if Staryu was still right beside her. Everything around Logan…just went black.

Robert raised a brow as Benjamin, in his own timid way, asked to tag alone with him. He didn't imagine himself with a partner during this journey, especially not Benjamin. Before now, he had the impression that he would also be traveling alone. Now that it was on his mind, he had to consider. Between the two of them they'd have more supplies, more protection, and he could probably help with that Syther thing. Well... Unless Benjamin was one of those Pokemon abuse nuts. His thoughts were broken into now and then by the calls of Benjamin's Rufflet. He figured it may have been trying to call to Pinhead, but whatever it was saying had very little effect. She made no move to make herself reappear and if she had responded to the Rufflet, she may have been hiding in her invisibility to further examine the other Pokemon.

Robert shrugged after a good moment of musings. "I don't see why not," he replied, grinning. "If you can wait for me to check to see if there's anything worth buying around the rest of this place and ask around a bit, that is." The merchants here didn't seem to have cemented land here and he wondered if their available items changed daily or periodically. He also had more time to check stores. He figured he'd look for the essentials and see if he can get more information that could push him in a plausible direction. After that, he'd be on his way.

Martha Elson

Six spindly legs crept across the dirt and through the undergrowth, the scratching and rustling of its skeletal toes doing nothing but taunt Martha in her helpless position. She continued to hack away at the material that bound her, and while a few of the thread snapped and gave Martha a little more room to wiggle her legs, the edge of the knife kept catching against the adhesive silk. It seemed impossible to slice through no matter how hard she tried, and while she doubted it was impossible the threading was certainly trying to trick Martha into thinking it was. Having lost sight of the Spinarak, only having the sounds of its movements to judge its position, Martha focused all of her efforts into sawing through her binds, careful not to catch her fingers on anything sharp. It didn't make much difference.

Calling out for Grete to assist, Martha was only met with an injured grunt just out of her line of sight. She called again, her tone changing to an order rather than a request. Another grunt, although this one sounded a little more determined to help. Martha saw no movement from the bushes though and could only assume that the Spoink was slumped down in the mud, struggling to help but desperately trying to trying to. Martha's pleas were answered but nothing was done to provide her with assistance, and that worried her.

Then it finally decided to rear its ugly, arachnoid head once more just out of the bushes, bearing its pincers. The Spinarak seemed to be keeping its distance though, as if waiting cautiously or analysing its prey. Martha might have guessed that it had spotted the knife in her hands if she wasn't so busy furiously trying to saw her way free. The Spinarak eyed her, keeping its movements slow and steady. It seemed to be acting territorially rather than actively aggressive she thought, seemingly trying to scare Martha off than tear her to pieces. She was sure that it wouldn't bat an eyelid at the latter plan though if it needed to.

The Spinarak opened its jaws wide, the two pincers glistening a deep, venomous purple. It moved a little closer, clearly readying itself for a strike. Martha pulled her legs up to her chest a little tighter, trying to keep some distance between the two of them. It only took her a moment to realise that she was in touching distance of the creature.

Her legs sprung forward, pushing them out with all her might and both feet colliding with the creature's face. It was not a powerful strike despite it was as much as Martha could muster. She was not a strong woman, but it was plenty. In recoil, the Spinarak was knocked back, its jaws slamming shut and a thin spray of needles were shot from its mouth. They veered off to the side, slicing through some thin branches and lodging themselves into bark. It had knocked the Pokemon's aim just enough to save Martha more than a few injuries.

But it only bought her a few seconds of time. Making sure to keep a firm distance between the explorer and itself, the Spinarak hissed, its fangs turning back to the same shade of purple. “Grete, where are you?!” Martha yelled, moving her arms to shield her unprotected face.

“Sppoooooooi!” she heard, followed by the sounds of a spring stretching and compressing.

There was a clang, almost like metal striking metal. Martha just caught sight of something glowing through the gaps between her two arms just as whatever it was shot straight into view and, more importantly, shot straight into the side of the Spinarak. Picking the bug type off of the ground, kicking up a small cloud of dust as it did so, it was launched a few metres to Martha's left, disoriented and lightly wounded.

Martha moved her arms down, looking back and forth between where the Spinarak once stood and where it lay now. Grete bounded forward, positioning herself beside Martha and, once again, tugging at her clothing, pulling at the shoulder of her shirt. This time Martha didn't intend on shrugging the psychic type off though, just thankful that Grete had arrived to save her just in time. She glanced back towards the Spinarak, which had picked itself back up and was clearly just as angry as it had been before. Martha felt a little less helpless now that Grete could fight back with whatever she had done.

She watched the Spinarak for a moment, its beady eyes watching her in return. Then it fired another string shot. Martha was particularly happy to see that it was not aimed at her, but instead at Grete who was more than happy to hop to the side unscathed. Grete almost seemed to be teasing the bug type now.

“Grete, do whatever you just did again!” Martha ordered. She hadn't a clue what kind of move it was, only that it was enough to harm the Spinarak more than her boot was.

A determined but not aggressive look sprawled along her face, Grete moving to position bherself etween Martha and the Spinarak, forming a barrier of ashen flesh. The pearl that rested precariously upon Grete's skull began to glisten. Martha first thought it to be sunlight reflecting off of the surface, which came down from the treetops in thin beams, but a glistening pink aura soon formed around the crystalline ball. It was enough of a pause for the Spinarak to try again. It spat out half a dozen more needles, each one a luminescent purple. They shot through the air with pin-point precision aimed at the psychic type, and this time there was nothing to knock the Spinarak's concentration. In the time it took Grete to charge her move, and with too much focus spent on attacking to leap out of the way, they sunk into the creature's hide, shattering on impact but clearly being painful. Grete winced but kept her stance steady.

She grunted again, and the pearl seemed to grow as bright as it could. Bracing herself, a thick cloud of purple fog exploded from the gemstone, spewing towards the Spinarak. It moved like a thick bolt of lightning, fraying at the edges, but it appeared more like Grete was creating some kind of smokescreen. Or was it more like a gust of wind? Martha had few talents, and apparently constructing similes was not one of them. Not like one would have to be a master poet to win a Pokémon battle of course, only a tactical mind and quick thinking. Unfortunately, Martha wasn't sure she had them either, and the attack was still rather difficult to describe.

With enough force to lift the Spinarak off of the ground, the wave of energy propelled the Pokémon off into the distance, its back smashing into a nearby tree. It was eager to get back to its feet, but the Spinarak was quite clearly wounded now. Not enough to discourage it, however. “Go on. Fire another,” Martha said, finally slicing through the last strands that bound her legs. Like the Spinarak, she too pushed herself back onto her feet.

Grete remained silent this time (something else that Martha was thankful for), and as hard as Spinarak tried it just wasn't fast enough to fire another poison sting in tiem. Another attack from Grete spiralled towards the creature, fired a little faster this time. As expected, it was a move that did not miss its target. The bug type was spent spiralling off into the bushes out of sight. Martha kept her eyes locked on the slight dent in the bush where it had landed, but couldn't see the Spinarak clamber back into the open nor did she hear it moving around. All turned silent once again, and as far as Martha could tell the Pokémon had been completely knocked out...

She rolled her head back, relaxing her shoulders and generally loosing any sense of grace that had been left after the ordeal. Glad to put the knife back in its holder and just do nothing for a while, Martha held the position. It had more than an unpleasant experience, the battle. She didn't even bother shooing away Grete when she gripped the hem of Martha's trousers and tried to pull her forward, seemingly unaffected by the recent fight beyond a few scratches. She just pulled the shrunken Pokéball from her belt and pressed the button on the front, absorbing the Spoink and leaving Martha completely alone.

In a moment she would press forward, continuing through the forests of route one and getting on with her mission. Time was of the essence, after all. That would come soon though, because now she spent a moment just doing nothing, and it felt amazing. If Grete hadn't fought back when she had then that could have been much, much worse, and the very idea of slipping up worried Martha. It also made this mission a whole lot more exciting.

The walk was quiet and tireless. Trent couldn't find the words to speak and Rin didn't have anything to say. Trent returned his Nidorino back into his pokeball, wishing that he could join him and just be carried by Rin instead. Rin, however, left Feign out of his pokeball and let him walk. Feign needed to be fast and have a lot of stamina, and normal training sessions wouldn't be as efficient as walking, at least, not where time was concermed. It'd been hours since they'd started walking, at least three, and Rin seemed to be unphased and showed no sign of exhaustion. Feign, four-legged as he was, didn't tire so easily, and was actually quite energetic about the endeavor. Trent, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. Barring the fact that he was two-legged, he was already carrying a rather sizable backpack that Rin uncharacteristically didn't really care for the contents of (likely because she thought so low of him that she didn't find him to be worthy of her theivery). Not to mention that he was a city boy, probably taking cars from place to place, walking only when necessary, it was no surprise that he was so tired out. He was panting and gasping loudly, barely keeping up with Rin's pace.

"H-hey...can...can we please take a break?" Trent asked with speech parted by coughing and panting. It seemed as if Rin didn't hear him as she kept walking and didn't even look back. Several minutes passed by until Rin abruptly stopped. Trent didn't notice right away and almost ran into her, stopping himself just short of her and falling on his rearend. Rin turned her head to the side and looked at him with a very stern, slightly scary expression. Trent returned her glance, but his face showed aloofness and fear. It was clear by this point, at least to Rin, that Trent was basically her pet. Unlike most others, Rin thought of pokemon as equals, and treated them as such. This was due to the symbiosis and domestic boundries between them for most of her life, they were more like her neighbors and friends rather than lower beings, and as such she showed them the respect that they deserved. This is largely the reason that she keeps Feign and Beau out of their pokeballs. Trent, on the other hand, has not deserved the her respect to be treated as any sort of equal to her: human, pokemon, or otherwise. She finds that those who hide behind no-talent weapons, such as guns and bodyguards, without any justifyable reason are the worst kind of beings, it truly disgusts her. Granted, she didn't explicitly let Trent know this, and as it stood she probably wasn't going to. He was her pet, she had no obligation to tell him anything.

"You know, ever since you've all you've done is threaten and complain, and you lost your gun to a baby," she looked to the Caterpie and said, "No offense, Beau." She then turned back to Trent. "Just sit down and shut up, you have to right to be making demands or requests, not until you get some testicular fortitude." That last expression was rather big for Rin, and she wasn't even sure she used it in the right context, she'd read it in a book she'd stolen from someone a while back. "Now, Kamen Rock is just a few steps away, but I'm not letting you go there until you become a man." She pulled out gun from earlier and pointed it at him. "Let's see..." She looked around for...something. Then, abruptly, she said, "I've got it!" She pointed to a creature off in the distance.

A wild Kangaskhan was off in the distance gathering food for itself and its young. Trent said, "It...uh...it looks pretty strong, but...I guess me and Kain can-"

"Not Kain, just you," Rin interuppted.

"W-WHAT!?" Trent exclaimed. "I can't beat that thing on my own!"

"No, you probably can't," She said with a stern expression. "But you will, or else I'll kill you." She wasn't going to kill him...not with the gun, at least, but she wasn't afraid to brandish her knives to spill some fresh blood. Granted, she'd never killed a human before, from what she'd expericenced in close kills, it wasn't much different from killing any other pokemon to her. The pokemon had families, memories, friends, thoughts, and lives just like humans did, to her there was no difference in killing one than there was from killing the other.

"S-seriously?" he asked. Rin didn't respond, but the stern expression on his face was enough to convince him that she was serious. He swallowed hard and then stood up, dropping his backpack on the ground. He slowly trudged over to the Kangaskhan's location, fear shown in each step.

"Oh, right," Rin said. "Catch." She threw a single pokeball over to him. "If you can, use it." Trent caught the pokeball, looked at it for a few moments, then looked to the pokemon, then looked to Rin, who watched him sternly. Again, he swallowed, and started back towards the Kangaskhan, putting the pokeball in his pocket. When he was close enough, as if the Kangaskhan could sense him, and let out a mighty roar. Rin gasped and exclaimed, "Oh no! I forgot!" She dashed passed Trent directly towards the Kangaskhan. When she was directly in front of her, she took the baby Kangaskhan out of its pouch. She flew into a rage, and was about to punch Rin, but Rin looked into her eyes fiercely, as if she were trying to communicate some sort of message. The Kangaskhan looked towards Trent ready to brawl, and Rin ran back to Feign, with Beau on her shoulder and the baby in her arms, ready to watch the fight.

Logan Locks

Click! Logan caught the Spinarak!

SPINARAK ♀ Hasty
Swarm - Spinarak Powers up Bug-type moves in a pinch

Poison Sting

String Shot

- 1x PokéBall

Benjamin Whistler

Benjamin nodded as Mr. Macintosh accepted his proposal. This was good! It was sad that Mr. Ambrose had gone off on his own without Benjamin, but as long as Benjamin had something or someone interesting to write about, he would be fine. Or maybe some food. Perhaps he should buy some food while they were out? He hadn't really eaten since before he got here.

"S-sounds like a really g-g-good idea, sir. I need to get some things, some things from the m-m-market too," Benjamin nodded again. And before he forgot, he whipped out his journal.

The Pikachu escaped, though Alex wasn't conscious to see it. It was a few minutes before he came round, the first thing he did was check on his condition. Upon finding that he wasn't too badly injured he got up and searched for the Pokeball he threw earlier. He found it amongst some long grass, he picked it up to get a closer look at it, it was split from top to bottom and completely unusable. Alex swore and threw the thing away.

“Right!” Alex proclaimed, which startled Cubchoo. “It's about time we rested.” He found a suitable rock to sit on and took his pack of his shoulders. He found out a bottle of water, which wasn't hard considering how perfectly his bag was packed. Somehow he could organize his ventures with military precision yet his office and flat were always a mess. He opened the bottle and took a large swig from it. After gulping down the water he poured some into a bowl for Cubchoo to lap at. “I have to keep you in top shape, so I'm giving you as much attention as I would do my gun. For now your my only weapon.” For a second he was silent in thought.

“Choo.” Cubchoo sighed, she was glad to be getting some rest from all the walking.

“Your right!” Alex said, once again showing that he hadn't the faintest idea what his Pokemon was ever saying. ”We better get moving again!” He stood up and stretched before putting the water away. He looked at the water left in the bowl and then at the bottle. He didn't want to waste any water but he also wasn't going to drink the water he had given to his Cubchoo, she could have dribbled in it. There was half a bottle left, which would last them the rest of the day. He threw the rest of the bowl away and stashed it in his bag. “This way!” he said setting off through the forest guided by his natural sense of direction.

As they walked the ground became more hilly. Small rivers trickled through the paths of least resistance going back to the stream that hey had passed earlier. The forest also began to grow denser. The trail they had been following had been lost long ago, before they met the Pikachu. Though Alex was guided by the sun, it was morning and they were headed north so long as they kept the sun on their left they were heading in the right direction.

“Hey there!” A young woman's voice came form near by. “Your lost too!” Alex turned to see a woman of around twenty approaching him. She was rather attractive, with shoulder length blonde hair, green eyes and a fair completion. Still she was almost young enough to be Alex daughter, not that he knew he had any.

“I'm not lost.” Alex said but the woman ignored him.

“Oh your a trainer too!” She exclaimed as she noticed Cubchoo and knelt down to stroke her.

“I'm not a trainer!” Alex replied. “I'm an archaeologist!”

“Aren't you cute!” She said pinching Cubchoo's cheek and making her glow bright pink. “What's your name then?” She asked in her babyish voice that was really starting to grate on Alex. She patted Cubchoo on the head and began to stroke her.

“She is called Cubchoo!” Alex stated with a hint of annoyance in his voice.

“If your getting annoyed at me with could always have a battle.” She said teasingly.

“Like I said I'm not a trainer!” Alex shouted putting his hands on his hips an a gesture of diffidence.

“What's up! Chicken? Come on, it'll be fun!” As much as she goaded him Alex wasn't going to give in.

“I said. I don't want a battle!”

“You never know you might eat me and win some money!” Then she picked up Cubchoo. “What do you say! Want to give it a go!” She asked the Pokemon.

“Cub! Cub!” Cubchoo agreed. Alex walked over and grabbed his Pokemon.

“ I don't know what your agreeing with her for we've got money to win!” He turned back to his opponent. “Could I have a moment?”

“Be my guest.” The woman said. Alex drew his Pokedex from his bag and began to look up the rules for a Pokemon battle. “The name's Lori, by the way!” She called to him as she put her stuff down and began loosing up.

“Alex!” He shouted back, too busy reading to say anything else. After a few more minutes he stopped and stood up.

“I'm ready!” He said, giving Cubchoo a gentle nudge with his boot. His Pokemon ran forwards in anticipation of his opponent's Pokemon.

“Go! Katherine!” The woman cried and a female Glameow appeared before her. Alex drew his Pokedex up so he could size up Lori's Pokemon. The match up was quite fair. As Alex put the Pokedex down it scanned Cubchoo and he picked up on something interesting. Cubchoo had learnt a new move, maybe he should give it a try.

“Cubchoo! Growl!” Alex ordered his Pokemon.

“Fake out!” Lori ordered her Pokemon at the same time. Katherine moved first attacking Cubchoo and making her flinch.

“Cubchoo! Get here!” Alex shouted to his Pokemon, it was a little miffed as to why but complied anyway. From his bag Alex produced a potion, in fact the only potion in his bag and used it on Cubchoo.

“Hey! That's cheating!” Lori shouted at him.

“It's not! Besides I don't think the rules count here anyway.” He replied guesting to the forests al around him. Lori was about to throw a retort at him but he took the initiative and ordered Cubchoo to attack. “Use Powder Snow!” Cubchoo released another breath of snow at the Glameow.

“Scratch!” Yet another scratch attack was launched at Cubchoo, this is getting repetitive Alex said to himself.

“Keep attacking with Powder Snow!” Cubchoo released another wave of snow at the Glameow but something odd happened. Ice began to surround Kat's body, she was being frozen.

Help

The PokéCommunity

Meta

Pokémon characters and images belong to The Pokémon Company International and Nintendo. This website is in no way affiliated with or endorsed by Nintendo, Creatures, GAMEFREAK, or The Pokémon Company International. We just love Pokémon.